5 Signs from Customer Service That It’s Time to Upgrade Your ERP

5 Signs from Customer Service That It’s Time to Upgrade Your ERP

5 Signs from Customer Service That It’s Time to Upgrade Your ERP2017-09-062019-04-26https://www.salespad.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/salespad_mainlogo.pngSalesPadhttps://www.salespad.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/customerserviceblog-1.jpg200px200px

If you don’t think customer service is important, then read no further.

But, you’re still reading because you know that smart, efficient customer service is crucial to all businesses.

Customers may forget what you said but they’ll never forget how you made them feel, as the adage goes. How your customer service representatives (or CSRs) perform and interact with customers can determine that person’s relationship with your company.

Good software systems allow CSRs visibility into a business, as well as visibility into customer buying trends and account information. However, lack of appropriate systems hinder CSRs from successfully navigating the many dilemmas involved in working across different systems.

While you may have an ERP system (or systems) already in place to manage your business, not all software is created equal. If you or your team is experiencing trouble in the following areas, it might be time to reevaluate your current systems in place for handling customer service.

1. Juggling multiple calls

Customer Service Representatives (CSR) manage multiple calls on a daily basis, typically quickly solving problems with minimal information. The fact is their duties could be a lot easier and their solutions more effective if they had better and faster access to relevant customer information.

2. Duplicate entries

Duplicate customer entries are possible when many CSRs are working across the the same system. Duplicate entries can cause confusion between customers and lower the productivity of a business.

The best solution for duplicate entries is software that combines customers cards, making it easier for CSRs to keep track of customers. Good software allows other CSRs in the company to see the updated information in the customer card, ensuring that the CSR team is on the same page and customers aren’t frustrated.

3. Keeping customer information organized

While it’s crucial to keep customer information readily available and organized, some systems can make this difficult because they don’t show customer buying trends or customer history with your company.

When evaluating software, look for features that provide CSRs with buying history, open orders and other historical sales information. Such features should allow you to view customer buying history and track previous sales, providing you with beneficial insights to fulfill the customer’s needs.

Additionally, this information should be readily available when dealing with individual customers — you shouldn’t be searching a dozen fields to get the information you need. The best software solution will likely include multiple features that provide the user with customer information such as notes associated with customer account to A/R information that allows users to access customers’ past billing history.

It should be easy for CSRs to become knowledgeable on the customer while working with them.

4. Minimizing mistakes

While ERP software systems are powerful, they’re often unconfigurable, which causes some difficulty for CSRs as they’re forced to “reinvent the wheel” for simple repeated tasks. The more steps a CSR has to take, the higher the likelihood for errors.

Software should be intuitive and minimize clicks, allowing for higher visibility of a customer card in one place rather than multiple locations. Customized fields and automated tasks leave less room for human error. Minimizing clicks saves time, eliminates errors, and increases productivity.

5. Setting tasks + follow-up

There’s nothing worse than dropping the ball on following up with a customer. Juggling multiple complex software systems doesn’t make it easy for CSRs to efficiently track tasks and follow through where they need to.

Some software programs have features that allow CSRs to send emails and assign tasks, all within one software system. This is also helpful for those who manage more than one CSR, allowing managers to assign different tasks and ensuring that CSRs are able to follow up with customers from inside the software.

Good software makes a difference.

Simply put, the right software solutions can make these customer service issues disappear. While some might hesitate to buy “snap-on” programs or apps for existing systems, getting the right software is money well spent on retaining and gaining customers.

With good software, CSRs are able to keep track of customer information all in one place, keeping the customer informed and happy in all their interactions. The right programs will strengthen a business as a whole, keeping customer service reps happy and able to do their jobs and customers well-served.